House of Dawn acts as family for young mothers during holidays

RIVERDALE — Felicia knows how it feels to have nobody during the holidays.

“I have spent holidays homeless,” she said. “Being homeless in any situation is hard. But being homeless during the holidays can be tragic.”

Felicia said the family she found in House of Dawn last year saved her holidays — and her life.

Dawn Murray founded House of Dawn in 2000 to shelter teenage mothers and to transition them and their children into stable lives. The organization can take in about 13 young mothers at a time from Clayton, Henry and Fayette counties

The Mission of House of Dawn is to 1) provide a stable, loving, home for teenage mothers and their children under adult supervision and 2) to provide them with the educational opportunities and the life training skills that they will need to become independent, self supporting women.

- Reduce the rate of abortions

- Reduce the rate of babies being abandoned

- Reduce the rate of second pregnancies

- Reduce welfare dependency

- Provide AIDS education

- Provide coaching and mentoring to increase parenting skills and bonds between mother and child

- Build self-esteem with program attendees and in other young women through our outreach program

- Help teen mothers to realize and achieve their educational objectives

- Help teen mothers to possess the job skills needed to prosper in the work force

The House of Dawn, Inc was founded in 2000 by Dawn Leneice Murray, who was at the time a Clayton County Parenting Educator Instructor and Home Visitor. Mrs. Murray worked with pregnant and parenting teen mothers in need of a safe haven for themselves as well as their children. Mrs. Murray saw what a need there was for a Second Chance Home in the Clayton County Community and stepped up to the plate to make her dream a reality.

Currently we are speaking to more and more young ladies to empower them to take hold of their future, their choices, and in doing so to reduce the rate of teen pregnancies. Former HOD graduates join our staff to meet with young women to encourage, teach, and relate to their challenges.